FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEBREVARD COLLEGE SPORTS INFORMATIONTuesday, February 21, 2012

TORNADOS EARN SPLIT ON THE ROAD AGAINST MILLIGAN

Clemens leads Tornados to victory in game one on mound, at plate

Milligan, Tenn. - Kayla Clemens provided the Tornados with a spark in game one, recording the game winning hit and the win on the pitching mound in Brevard’s 8-7 victory over Milligan, but behind the bat of Emily Biggs, the Buffaloes earned the split as Milligan held off Brevard in the nightcap, 7-2.

Brevard moves to 6-2 on the season, while Milligan finishes the day with a 3-5 record.

Clemens pitched 2.2 innings of relief and Brittany Fowler and Clemens drove in the go-ahead runs as the Tornados held on to record the 8-7 victory in the first game of the doubleheader against the Buffaloes.

Five Brevard players recorded multiple hits in the contest led by Brittany Tucker’s three hit game and Clemens, Tucker and Emily Boykin combined for seven RBIs as the Tornados held off Milligan despite three RBI performances by both Krista Lambdin and Camille Olvey.

Brevard came out of the gates swinging as the Tornados plated five runs over the first two innings as Tucker drove in a run with a base hit and Boykin singled home two runs in the first to give BC the early lead. Clemens built on the lead, driving a double to left field in the top of the second, scoring Fowler and Meredith Davenport to put BC up 5-0.

The lead increased to six in the top of the fourth inning as Chelsi Mallory doubled to right centerfield with one out. After a strikeout, Tucker found a hole in the right side of the infield, bringing Mallory across the plate to stake BC starter Alyssa Miller to a 6-0 lead.

Milligan started their comeback in the bottom of the fifth as Abby Hughes led off the inning by being hit by a pitch. Lambdin followed with a two-run home run, clearing the left field fence to put the Buffaloes on the board.

Helped by two Brevard fielding errors in the bottom of the sixth, Milligan tied the game up, with Olvey providing most of the damage with a one-out two-RBI single up the middle, scoring Lambdin and Lacey Huskins to knot the game up at 6 apiece.

Both teams put runners on base in the seventh inning, but relievers Clemens and Samantha Mahala kept the game tied as the teams headed into extra innings.

Brevard struck for two runs in the top of the eighth as Fowler brought home Ally Davenport with a one out single and Clemens drove in Mallory with a double, giving Brevard an insurance run heading into the bottom half of the inning.

Milligan threatened to send the game to the ninth as the Buffaloes placed runners on first and second with one out after Olvey’s run scoring single, but Clemens was able to escape the jam and retire the side to close out the game.

Clemens continued to provide damage at the plate for the Tornados, but Emily Biggs provided the majority of the damage for Milligan with a triple and a home run at the plate as the Buffaloes earned the split against Brevard at Anglin Field.

The Buffaloes plated runs in each of the first three innings in building a 6-0 lead off Clemens (4-1) in the nightcap. Brittany DiRobbio and Olvey scored on a pair of BC errors in the first inning to take the early lead and Biggs provided the majority of the damage in the next two innings, leading off the second with a solo home run and driving in two on a one-out triple in the third inning, before coming around to score on Megan Nicol’s base hit to give Milligan starter Sierra Plese breathing room early in the contest.

Milligan added another run in the bottom of the fifth as Maleah Wolfenbarger led off the inning with a solo home run.

Down to their final at-bat, the Tornados battled back in the top of the seventh off Milligan reliever Chancli Connatser as four of the first five BC batters reached base in the inning. Fowler was hit by a pitch and Meredith Davenport singled to right to lead off the frame and both runners advanced on a passed ball, giving BC two in scoring position. After a line out, Mallory brought in the first Brevard run of the contest on a groundout, ending the Buffaloes shutout attempt. Clemens followed with a base hit to left centerfield scoring Davenport, but the comeback attempt fell short as Connatser retired the final BC batter to end the contest.

Brevard remains on the road in non-conference action as the Tornados travel to Gaffney, S.C. on Saturday, February 25th as Brevard engages Alderson-Broaddus in a neutral site contest hosted by Limestone College. First pitch between the Battlers and the Tornados is set for 1:30 p.m., while Brevard will take on Limestone at 3:30 p.m.